Posted by D on September 07, 2002 at 10:07:27:
The debate earlier on this board about teachers in general got me to thinking about the topic.
Since schools are basically set up as job training, why does one have to defend how a teacher teaches.
Yes, music and art are wonderful. Yes, if one takes music and art, the average person improves his/her intelligence. Yes, music and art from an early age help all learning.
If schools are basically set up as job training, what difference does it make? Take mathematics as an example. Do you use advanced math to balance your checkbook or simple math? Does it take advanced mathematics to play an instrument? What about the letters one writes? Many of the persons using this board don't have a clue about spelling or grammar. (When I was in college 30 years ago, creative writing was IN. What a crock!!!)
So, does one defend a teacher because they don't teach what we think they should or do we defend the teacher because they teach what they are required to so "you" can go out and earn a living?
Here's an opinion for you. I believe that if the educational system were changed to teach all of us to think for ourselves, we would have fewer people on public assistance and more people out there working for themselves. The world would be a better place for it.